Fun Facts: Penn State-Iowa

Now we enter the serious phase of the Fun Facts season.

Well, not really. But this being the week of the Penn State-Iowa game, there are a lot more football-ish nuggets to chew on than in, say, the North Texas-Iowa game. Such as:

1. Penn State leads the nation in tackles for losses with 11.3 per game.

2. Iowa's Nate Stanley is one of just seven FBS quarterbacks with 10 or more passing touchdowns. Penn State's Trace McSorley has nine.

3. Penn State is 11th in the nation in scoring offense, but only 41st in total offense.

4. Iowa is 6-for-7 in fourth-down conversions.

5. Penn State is second in the nation in turnover margin with +2.33 per game, and tied for third in turnovers forced with nine.

6. Penn State's Saquon Barkley is second in the nation in all-purpose yards with 218.3 per game. Iowa's Akrum Wadley is 12th with 170.0.

7. The Sagarin Ratings of the opponents Iowa and Penn State have played: 55. Pittsburgh; 65. Iowa State; 95. Wyoming; 128. North Texas; 142. Akron; 165. Georgia State. Thirty-eight FCS teams, including No. 109 Northern Iowa, are ahead of Georgia State, which lost 56-0 at Penn State last Saturday.

8. Penn State has outscored its foes, 141-14, but has the same number of first downs as its opponents, 57.

9. Iowa has allowed 0 punt-return yards.

10. Hawkeye cornerback Josh Jackson is tied with Colorado's Isaiah Oliver for first in the nation in passes defended with 8 (6 deflected, 2 intercepted).

11. Iowa is sixth nationally in time of possession with 35:35.33 minutes per game. Penn State is 126th with 24:07.67.

12. Penn State has scored 30-plus points the last 10 games. Iowa's longest such streak was five games, set in 1899-1900 and again in 2015.

13. Iowa is a 12-point underdog. The last time it was an underdog by double-digits, it was a 21-point point dog against Michigan last November and won. The Hawkeyes have covered the spread the last four times they were double-digit dogs.

14. Counting Saturday's game, four of the last five Iowa-Penn State games were played at night.

15. Penn State's starting offensive linemen average 328 pounds. Each of the five weighs at least 312.

16. Iowa has won its last five Big Ten openers. Its last loss in a conference-opener was in 2011 against Penn State. Penn State lost its Big Ten opener last year, against Michigan. It hasn't dropped a conference game since.

17. The Hawkeyes came from behind to win each of their three games this season.

18. Iowa is seeking its 398th home victory. On Monday its sports information department said the Hawkeyes wer going for their 400th home win, but the next day it subtracted two triumphs. Its home mark is 397-217-16.

19. In 1996, James Franklin was the offensive coordinator for the Roskilde Kings of the Danish American Football Federation. The Kings beat the Copenhagen Towers 62-48 in that season's Mermaid Bowl - the league's title game.

20. When Penn State wins on a Saturday, select Dunkin' Donuts locations in Pennsylvania sell medium coffees for $1 to Dunkin' Donuts Perks members. Iced coffee is not included.